


When the Past Meets the Present

by Therealdeo



Category: Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-26
Updated: 2020-03-26
Packaged: 2021-02-28 19:27:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,322
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23322418
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Therealdeo/pseuds/Therealdeo
Summary: Erica came to Roswell she didn't expect to have her past meet her present but now it's happening and she's gotta deal with it.
Relationships: Kyle Valenti/Original Female Character(s), Michael Guerin/Alex Manes
Comments: 5
Kudos: 16





	1. Now entering Roswell: Please keep your expectations low and check them at Town Limits

**Author's Note:**

  * For [darkangel86](https://archiveofourown.org/users/darkangel86/gifts).



> So..this has been in my head for weeks and now I'm writing it down. Things will be unveiled in due time and hopefully, I've explained it well. Just bare with me for a little bit to establish some things.

When Erica walked into a dive bar called The Wild Pony in a backward town like Roswell, New Mexico, the last thing she expected was to be thrown back seventy years and a government conspiracy. 

She should probably back up a little bit and things will make a little bit more sense. 

_ ** _

_ The day had finally come: she had served her time and no longer owed anything to the United States Army. She’d spent the last five years in a hospital in Germany and she’d seen a lot of blood and gore come through her hospital and most made it home and she never thought about them after they got back on the helicopter back home.  _

_ Except for Alex Manes.  _

_ He was Airforce, but something about him that wasn’t the typical military styler and Erica liked it. Liked him.  _

_ When the convey he’d been in had been attacked, he was the only one to make it out alive, missing one limb, but out alive at least. He’d been murmuring about someone named ‘Michael’ and when the drugs had worn off and he became slightly soberer, she’d noticed that he had that thousand-yard haunted stare in his eyes that stuck with her.  _

_ Over his time recovering and being fitted for his first prosthetic, they’d become close and she’d learn all about Alex Manes. The abusive father, the stereotypical small-town homophobia and the boy he left behind. She’d adopted him into her family.  _

_ She liked to think that her brother, Chris, would have been a lot like Alex had -.  _

_ Not the time to go down  _ that _ road.  _

_ She’d just signed her papers and had changed and was walking around to leave when she’d been stopped short.  _

_ “Private Mason.” _

_ She turned around and when she did she really wished she’d ignored him. _

_ “Sargent Manes?” She crossed her arms. “How can I help you?” _

_ “I think it’s time you come with me and accept the position I have waiting for you at  _ Project Shepard _.” _

_ She’d barely held back from rolling her eyes and slugging him.  _

_ “And I think,  _ Sargent Manes, _ I gave you my answer to that proposal when you brought it up six months ago.” She went to push past him. “Have a nice life.” _

_ “You’ll regret it, Private. And if you don’t Alex will.”  _

_ She stopped and turned around immediately, stomping right up to him. _

_ “Do  _ **_not_ ** _ threaten me with Alex or violence, Sargent Manes. You don’t know who I am.” _

_ He said nothing as she left but she knew he’d find her someday. _

_ **** _

Erica locks her car and walks into the Wild Pony, it’s pretty much what she expects from a Small Town Dive: grungy but still homey in a certain way. 

The bartender is gorgeous, brown hair, brown eyes, and a soft smile that lit up both her face and the room. She’s clearly trying to pull in the tips from the way she’s working the bar and Erica wouldn’t mind helping out. 

She’s leaning against the bar waiting to order a whiskey when she feels a presence beside her. She’s going to reply when she finally is able to order. 

“Hey there. Haven’t seen you before, what can I get you?”

“First time and can I get double whiskey neat please, Darling?”

“Sure thing, honey. One second.”

The presence beside her decides to speak finally.

“I like a girl who can hold her liquor.”

She glances over and sees, admittedly, a gorgeous man standing beside her. Glancing down she can make out the well-worn boots on his feet. Moving her eyes up more, she can see jeans that probably should have been replaced a few years ago and a turquoise belt buckle that’s clearly (possibly) overcompensating for something. He’s got a denim shirt on and he’s clearly allergic to closed buttons. Moving up to his face he’s got easily a day’s worth of scruff on his jaw and a cowboy hat that’s got curls peeking out below it. He is a very handsome man, Erica can’t lie. 

“Funny, so do I.” She smirks and gladly accepts the drink from the bartender. “What do I owe you darlin’?”

“Just your name, hon.” 

“Erica. And yours?”

“Maria. Maria DeLuca.”

Erica tries her best to not show either recognition or surprise on her face. 

“Thanks, Maria.”

“So,” Cowboy starts up again. “Out of all the dusty bars in this place, you walk into this bar. Fate, huh?”

She lets out a huff of a laugh. 

“Sure, fate. Or my car and the fact this is the only decent bar in town.”

Her sarcasm doesn’t seem to phase Cowboy and he keeps trying to shoot his shot. 

“What do you say I show you around town in my pick-up truck?”

She downs her drink and turns around to lean against the bar as she looks out onto the barroom floor. 

“I say you’re barking up the wrong tree there Cowboy.”

“My name’s Michael. Michael Guerin.”

She once again tries not to show recognition on her face as she nods. 

Cowboy - Michael - looks like he’s about to say something again when Erica’s attention is drawn to the doorway of the bar. 

Her face brightens and she lights up as she heads for the door. She knows Maria and Michael have to be staring but she doesn’t give a fuck. 

“Alex Manes.” She hugs him and holds him tight. “I thought I’d never find you in this small town but here you are.” She pulls back and looks him up and down. “If I didn’t know any better I’d say that you’d never lost a leg.” 

“Erica. You were supposed to text me when you got here, I didn’t want you to wait here and be subjected to the town crazy.”

“It’s okay ‘Lex.” She glances beside Alex and sees someone with the best cheekbones she’s ever seen. “And who’s this?”

“Private Erica Mason, this is Kyle Valenti. Kyle this is Erica.”

“Wait.” She stands back and backs away a little and looks to Kyle. “Kyle? As in Kyle your ex-best friend turned high school bully?  _ That _ Kyle Valenti?”

Alex laughs. 

“Yeah, I guess I forgot to mention that in my letter.” 

“No fucking shit, Manes.” 

Before anyone can say anything, Michael walks up to them. 

“Is this invitation-only or can anyone join?”

“Erica, do you want to head out of here?”

She spares one last glance before taking Alex’s arm. 

“Sure. I believe you have a dog to introduce me to, don’t you?” She leads them out and turns her head back one last time to say something to Michael. “Sorry, Michael, can’t cross another one of Alex’s friends off of your list.”

The laughter of the three of them echoes as they leave Maria and Michael in the dust. Michael’s got a strange feeling about Erica; he’s sure he’s never met her but it’s like he’s met her before, someplace else.

He’s gonna figure this out. 


	2. Night 1 in Roswell: Cowboys and Space Aliens May be More Common than You Think and Could be the Same Person

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erica starts to settle into Roswell but someone's not looking to make it easy for her. Challenge Accepted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's chapter 2. No guarantees on three. But good news: there's one scene that I'm writing that's the first scene I pictured in my head. Now I need to but it in the plot I've created.

Kyle, Alex, and Erica end up at Alex’s place with beers between them and Buffy cuddled up on Erica’s lap. She’s telling stories of her last couple of years in the Army when Buffy’s hackles raise and she starts vibrating and growling under her breath towards the front door. 

“Protective isn’t she Alex?”

He huffs out a laugh. 

“Yeah, she can be.” He grabs his cane to walk to the door. Erica’s eyes soften as she sees how well Alex moves around the place without his prosthetic on. “Guerin? What are you doing here?”

Michael doesn’t give a reply, he just walks right in as if he owns the place. 

“Oh so three’s a party but four’s a crowd then, Captain?”

“Again, what are you doing here, Guerin?”

“You sure seem to know this town’s new arrival, don’t you Alex?”

“I do, Guerin and what does that have to do with you?”

Michael walks past him and sits on the coffee table in front of Erica looking up at her from under the brim of his cowboy hat with his elbows on his knees. 

“Actually Alex, it’s  **her** that I’m here to see.”

Erica makes no move to cower or hide away from Michael’s intense stare and if anything she sits forward and sits straighter under Michael’s attempt at intimidation. She takes a final swig of beer, slams the bottle on the table and settles back into the couch as Kyle and Alex take their seats again. 

Alex sends a questioning nod to Erica who gives her own affirmative nod as she holds out her hand to formally introduce herself. 

“Private Erica Mason,” She lets a soft smile cross her face as she corrects herself. “Actually, it’s just Erica, Registered Nurse.”

“Michael Guerin,” he narrows his eyes. “But you knew that already didn’t you?”

“Sure did, Michael.”

“And why’s that?”

She smirks and gestures to Alex. 

“I’m a friend of Alex of course.” 

“Then why haven’t I ever heard of you before?”

“Maybe he didn’t want you to know about me.”

“Huh.” Michael sits back and crosses his arms. “And yet, I can’t put by finger on it, but I know you.”

“Don’t think so Cowboy. I’ve never been to Roswell before and the only one I know is Alex.” She reaches for another beer and cracks it open with her hand. “Guess I just have one of those faces.” She takes a drink and settles back against the couch. “Now I believe you weren’t invited to this little party, so if you’d kindly leave?”

Michael sits back and eyes her up one last time and leaves with barely a glance to Kyle and Alex as the door slams shut. 

There’s silence for a few moments before Erica speaks up.

“So... **that’s** Michael Guerin?”

“Uh-huh.”

“The Michael Guerin you were calling out for?”

“Sure thing.”

“Well, he’s….exactly what I expected.” She throws her head back against the top of the couch. “So, you have no issue with me crashing here for a while, Lex?”

“Erica, you know how happy I am to see you, it’s not a big deal to have you here.” Alex moves over to the couch. “But I need to know one thing.”

Erica rests her head on her hand and gestures for Alex to go on.

“Why exactly are you here? I mean it’s been four years and you didn’t say anything about coming here or that you weren’t re-upping your enlistment.” 

“Yeah….” Erica takes a breath. “So there’s a little bit more I haven’t told you.” She braces herself for the inevitable fallout from what she’s about to say next. “About a year after you were discharged from Frankfurt, I was called to my commander’s office. Someone was there to see me.”

Kyle speaks for the first time in a long time. 

“Why do you have the look screaming of ‘Government Conspiracy’ on your face?”

Alex narrows his eyes in recognition. 

“Because someone  **involved** in a Government Conspiracy was there to see you weren’t they?”

“Yeah, they were.”

“My father.”

“You got it, ‘Lex.” She lets out a choked out laugh. “I walked in and there was my CO and one Sargent Jesse Manes waiting for me. Turns out I was selected to join something called Project Shepard and I was to report to Caulfield.” 

“Project Shepard, huh.”

“Alex, something tells me you know all about Project Shepard, don’t you?”

“Yeah. I do.” 

Kyle speaks up then. 

“And did you accept the position?”

“I kind of had to Cheekbones, you know Court Martialed thing.” Erica carefully reads the room and she knows that Kyle and Alex know some of the more non-reported things. “Why do I feel like ya’ll know something I don’t know.”

“Do you know what Caulfield and Project Shepard actually was?”

“Aliens.”

Kyle and Alex are both taken aback by the casualness that Erica says that.

“When did you say you were to report to Caulfield?”

“August 2013.”

“A-and were there just military there or civilians?” Kyle looks anxious. 

“You mean was Sheriff James Valenti there?” Erica softens her eyes again. “Yeah, Kyle. Jim was there… Jim was a good man.” She glances over at Alex. “Look, Alex don’t you bullshit me.”

‘How are you so sure and not freaking out about Aliens?”

“Please...a) it’s 2019 and b) do you know now when I ask the question on who the president is, the response I get is ‘oh fuck.’ and variations of it.” Erica stands up and goes to grab her bag. “Aliens is the least surprising thing to be true.”

Erica knows that they have a shit ton more to talk about but she’s tired. 

“Listen. I know that I have more answers to questions you have but I’m tired and I’d like to sleep for the next twelve hours.”

“Yeah. No worries.” Alex gets up to give her a hug. Kyle does the same. “See you in the morning.”

Erica goes up the stairs but before she’s in her room, she leans back down to lean on the bannister to see the men in the living room. 

“Hey, Cheekbones.”

“Yeah, Pretty Girl?”

Erica smirks.

“Your dad, Jim? He was one of the good ones. Jesse Manes may have gotten his claws into Jim but even I could tell Jim was done with the Manes bullshit.” Erica makes eye contact with Kyle. “He didn’t deserve what Manes did to him. Good night boys.”

As soon as they here her door close, Kyle and Alex take a minute. 

“Alex. I’m not one to question you so I’m only going to ask once: do you trust her? Is she telling the truth?” 

“I trust her. She’s hiding something, though. But if she is hiding something?” Alex claps his hands together. “Then it’s something that she needs to keep close for her own survival.”

Alex gets up and herds Buffy towards the bedroom. 

“She’ll come clean soon enough.” He goes to enter his bedroom. “Night Kyle, lock up when you leave.” 

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first chapter but I have time now to work as I'm in self-isolation and have nothing to do but write.


End file.
